Nightmares That Would Never Go Away {Part Two}

Both Imran and Ayra run out of their apartment, but Imran turns to stop his daughter because it might not be something for someone like her to see.

But she was adamant about going and to see what was happening to Shyra who has been nothing but kind to her.

"Dad, no. Let's go and see what's wrong with her. And you know that she isn't your non mahram, right?" Ayra asks him. This surprises Imran as he does not know what to say other than to let her go with her to Shyra's apartment.

As they walked out of their apartment what surprised them was the fact that Shyra's apartment door was locked.

Imran knocked on the door hoping that Shyra might open the door.

"Dad, can I try?" Ayra asked her father who moved away from the door so that she could give it a try.

"Shy, it's me Ayra. Could you please open the door?" She politely asks waiting patiently for Shyra to open the door. But she didn't open it so Ayra turned the door to their surprise it opened.

"Wait, I will walk in first," Imran says to his daughter who nods and lets him go inside the apartment only to find nothing wrong with it.

Imran knew that something was wrong in Shyra's bedroom but now he knew what his daughter was talking about. This was the time that he would need her help.

"Why does this keep happening to me? Why did I do wrong?" they heard Shyra yelling in the room. And then they heard things being thrown around and they quickly rushed to where the bedroom was.

Imran opened the door to find a figure who was at the corner of the room shaking and holding her head.

"Shy, it's me Ayra, and my Dad. We are here for you," Ayra says trying to approach her.

She looked at her Dad who nodded and gave her the go-ahead for her to move forward.

Ayra kneeled in front of Shyra and put her hand on her shoulder and then sat beside her.

"Do you need a hug?" Ayra asks making Shyra look at her dad and her with a tear-stricken face. "Dad won't hug you, I will," she added giving her a small smile.

Ayra moved closer to Shyra and wrapped her arms around her. This made Shyra feel calm and relaxed while letting Ayra hug her.

This moment surprised Imran, he couldn't help but feel proud of her. She might be eight almost nine years old but she is more mature than any other child of her age.

After a few minutes, Shyra started to relax and this is when Imran went to grab the first aid kit to bandage her ankle as it looked swollen.

"Shyra, we need to look at your ankle before it gets bad," Imran asks her while showing her the box he had in his hands. "Ayra would stay right there while I take care of your ankle if you let me," he added making ease the nervousness of Shyra.

Shyra nodded making Imran kneel in front of her while Ayra was by her side. She was holding Arya's hand while her father started inspecting her ankle.

Imran was almost done with dressing Shyra's ankle. And then he moved away from her to give her space to move her leg.

"Shyra, are you alright?" Ayra asks her while still holding her hand.

"I...I don't think I will ever be..."

"You will be with the right help. Dad and Papa will help you, right dad?"Ayra says while looking at her father. "They will help you when you are ready for it. No one would force you to get help but we are here if you need it," she added giving a small smile to Shyra.

"But..."

"When you are ready we will be next door. And you are always welcome whenever and whatever time just knock and I will be there because Dad is..."

"Ayra, she doesn't need to know all that. Now, I need to go and get some food for all of us and she needs painkillers and rest so that she can heal her ankle. And don't worry about the notes in class I will get them for you at the end of every class," Imran says to both Ayra and Shyra.

"You...don't need to stay with me..."

"Thats true, but I want to. Thats until you are alright, right Dad?" Ayra explained and then turned to her father who nodded at her.

"She is right, but Ayra you have school tomorrow and..."

"Yes, thats true and I can stay here with Shyra if she lets me," Ayra says looking at Shyra for help.

"That's up to your father, Ayra," Shyra tells Ayra who knows that her father might not let her stay.

"Why do I go and get your pajamas and tomorrow's school uniform plus your books, okay?" Imran asks his daughter surprising both Ayra and Shyra.

"Thank you so much, Dad."

Imran knew that Shyra needed Ayra to be there for her even if they knew each other by saying salaam each time they met.

He also knew that whatever had been bothering Shyra was something that she ran away from rather than stay to ask for help. She had the signs of being abused but Imran knew that Shyra could be the only one who could ask for help and not be forced to get help.

Imran then leaves and walks back to his apartment to get Ayra's things and bring them back to Shyra's and then he orders some food for the three of them hoping that Shyra does not have any allergies.

After the food was delivered, it was time for him to head back to the apartment to get Ayra's packed bag with everything she would need for her stay.

Imran closed his apartment door and opened the next-door apartment and walked inside.

He could hear voices that were coming from the bedroom. He moved closer to hear what they were talking about.

"I know that I might be just a kid, but sometimes being a kid is a blessing because you dont have to worry about a lot of things, right?" Ayra asks Shyra. "But that statement isn't always true especially when I do worry about my Dad and how he is. I know that someone might judge him for having a daughter so young and without a mother. They will continue to judge until they learn and know the entire truth, they will be shocked," she added laughing.

"Everyone has their own story, their reasons to be who they are now and who they will be in the future but people will always judge you whether it is your fault or not," Shyra explained to the little girl who was listening attentively to her. "In Islam, we are taught not to judge people based on who they are, what they look like, or even their religion, right?" she asked making Ayra nod.

"But in the society we live in, it is different because of what they only see and hear from others. Thank you for staying with me, I don't want to be anyone's burden..."

"Shy, you will never be a burden to me or even Dad. Because we are all humans who make mistakes and Allah forgives us when we ask for forgiveness, right?" Ayra asks her. "Allah knows what you and I are going through so whoever judges us, dont have a right to. My Papa taught me that helping others shouldn't be an oligation but it should come from your heart. I love helping people and so does Dad and Papa. Papa is my grandfather, he is a well-known doctor," she added smiling remembering the memories of them together.

"Some day i will be able to tell you, your Dad and your Papa my story but for now..."

"You aren't ready and Ayra and I will respect," Imran says interrupting Shyra. "And now it is time for dinner as it is also time for Isha prayers, right Ayra?" He added looking at his daughter who nodded.

"Come we will eat at the dinner table while Dad gets the food and plates, right?" Ayra tells Shyra while looking at her father with a small smile forming on her face.

"Okay, I will go and dont take long, Ayra. And Shyra, someday i will tell you my story...our story," he says to Shyra who nodded.

As Imran walked out of the room Ayra helped Shyra get cleaned up and then helped her to the dining room where she found her father who already placed the food on their plates and the table.

"I am sorry, I don't know what you liked so..."

"Thank you. I am not a picky eater. No one has gone through the trouble except for my sisters back home. We call each other sisters but aren't blood-related," Shyra says surprising both the father and daughter who smile at each other knowing that she will soon be ready to talk about what happened to her.

"You are welcome," he says smiling at her.

Imran could see how broken Shyra was, but he also knew that she was much stronger than anyone thought. Surviving whatever she had gone through and making it until now, is known as a miracle because most people never make it alive.

Nightmares can cause someone to break at a certain point that they see no light at the end but in reality, they are just there to break people until they become broken.